CSCE 557: INTRODUCTION TO CRYPTOGRAPHY
End of Course Summary of Objectives
Fall 2005—Prof. Duncan A. Buell
Catalog Description:
557—Introduction to Cryptography. ={MATH 587} (3) (Prereq: CSCE 145, MATH 241 or
250, and either CSCE 355 or MATH 574) Design of secret codes for secure communication,
including encryption and integrity verification; ciphers, cryptographic hashing, and public key
cryptosystems such as RSA. Mathematical principles underlying encryption. Code-breaking
techniques. Cryptographic protocols.
Prerequisite(s) By Topic:
Introduction to programming
Discrete mathematics
Vector calculus
Textbook(s) and Other Required Material:
Wade Trappe and Lawrence C. Washington, Introduction to Cryptography with Coding Theory,
2nd edition, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 2005.
Computing Platform: Windows XP, Unix
Course Objectives: {Assessment Methods Shown in Braces}
1. Know the principles of cryptology and of cryptanalysis of historical ciphers {exams}.
2. Know and apply the theory and practice of modern cryptographic systems {exams,
programming assignments}.
3. Know and apply the theory and practice of protocols (that will include cryptography) for
secure electronic communication {exams, programming assignments}.
4. Be aware of the social, ethical, and political issues surrounding cryptography and its use in
(especially electronic) communications.
Topics Covered:
1. Mathematical preliminaries (8 hours)
2. Security uses of cryptography (3 hours)
3. Cryptanalysis of classical ciphers (3 hours)
4. Information theory; perfect secrecy; one-time pads (3 hours
5. Product cryptosystems and block ciphers (3 hours)
6. AES (Advanced Encryption Standard) – Rijndael (3 hours)
7. Public key encryption and RSA (6 hours)
8. Digital signatures (3 hours)
9. Authentication and key exchange (4 hours)
10. Advanced topics (3 hours)
11. Reviews and tests (3 hours)
Laboratory Projects and Other Student Work
Programming assignments, written assignments, and examinations.
Difference between Undergraduate and Graduate Work
To receive graduate credit, students must complete a major project in addition to the
programming assignments.
Syllabus Flexibility: High. The instructor chooses the textbook, language, and projects.
3
3
1
1
1
2
1
1
3
2
2
1
3
1
1
2
Estimated Computing Category Content (Semester hours):
Area
Core
Advanced
Area
Algorithms
3
Data Structures
Software
Programming
Design
Languages
Computer
Architecture
1
Core
Estimated Information Systems Category Content (Semester hours):
Area
Core
Advanced
Area
Core
Hardware and
Networking and
Software
Telecommunications
Modern
Analysis
Programming
and
Language
Design
Data
Role of IS in an
Management
Organization
Quantitative
Information Systems
Advanced
Advanced
1
1
11. Electronics and
Digital Sys Design
10. Application Area
5. Communicate
Effectively
6. Liberal arts & Soc.
Sciences
7. Basic Science and
Lab Procedures
8. Learn New Tools &
Processes
9. Employed upon
Graduation
4. Work on teams
2. Computing
Fundamentals
3. Apply Computing
Principles
Course Objectives
1. Historical cryptography
2. Modern cryptography
3. Protocols for secure
communication
4. Social/ethical/political issues
1. Logic & Math
Relationship of Course to Program Outcomes:
The contribution of each course objective to meeting the program outcomes is indicated with the
scale:
3 = major contributor, 2 = moderate contributor, 1 = minor contributor. Blank if not related.
Program Outcomes
Analysis
1
Environment
Oral and Written Communication: None
Social and Ethical Issues: Role of cryptology in society; security issues
Theoretical Content:
Mathematics fundamental to cryptology
Analysis and Design:
Cryptographic systems.
Class/Laboratory Schedule:
Lecture: 3 periods of 50 minutes or 2 periods of 75 minutes per week
Course Coordinator: Duncan Buell
Modification and Approval History:
Initial description September 2002
Revised June 2005 by Duncan Buell to update text and clarify objectives and topics
Assessment of Learning by Course-Objective:
Summary of Results by Objective and Percentage of Students Meeting Course Objectives:
% Students Meeting Objective
Coursework
Program 1
Program 2
Program 3
Program 4
Program 5
Class
Discussion
Exam
Final Exam
Average
Topic
Test exercise in computing
LFSR
DES
Factoring
Digital Signatures
Obj. 1
Obj. 2
Obj. 3
74%
85%
85%
66%
74%
85%
85%
66%
Social, ethical, policy issues
Comprehensive
Comprehensive
Obj. 4
89%
74%
85%
75%
70%
78%
78.4%
78%
77.7%
88.8%
Measurement of Course Objectives
The objective standard used is 70% for the programming assignments. Labs are graded on a scale of 0 to
50 points, with the score reflecting correctness of the program design, successful compilation, correct
execution of the program, and documentation of the code. Thus, a standard of 70% implies that at least
half of the program’s functionality worked correctly. An objective standard of 60% was used for the
exams.
Percentage distributions are based on 27 undergraduate students who received who received grades for
the class.
Objective 1. Know the principles of cryptology and of cryptanalysis of historical ciphers.
Introductory work was included on historical ciphers, including one programming exercise; these ciphers
are broken with a combination of probability/statistics, combinatorics, and language modeling.
Objective 2. Know and apply the theory and practice of modern cryptographic systems.
The background of public key cryptography is computational number theory. This expertise was
measured with programming exercises in factoring and digital signatures as well as questions on the
exams. There was also material, albeit less intensive because much more mathematical, on the
cryptanalytic methods for AES and the introductory mathematics of information theory.
Objective 3. Know and apply the theory and practice of protocols (that will include
cryptography) for secure electronic communication.
The first step of secure communication is a strong cryptographic algorithm. Secure communication also
requires the implementation of the algorithm in a way that does not compromise the security. Knowledge
of this was tested on exams.
Objective 4. Be aware of the social, ethical, and political issues surrounding cryptography and
its use in (especially electronic) communications.
This objective is especially hard to present and evaluate because it is highly charged with political
overtones. Nonetheless, discussions were held in class on such topics as: the equities problem in SIGINT
versus COMSEC activities; the difficult problem of discerning the truth (for example, about whether
limiting export by key size is affecting economic competitiveness more or less than it hurts national
interests with regard to the information that can be made available to the government) when so much
information is kept classified; and the role of technical expertise by NSA in decisions by NIST regarding
standards for cryptographic systems. Student feedback in these discussions factored in to the part of their
final grades that came from in-class participation.
Grade Distribution:
A
22.2% (6)
B+
7.4% (2)
B
33.3% (9)
C+
7.4% (2)
C
14.8% (4)
D+
3.7% (1)
D
0.0% (0)
F
7.4% (2)
W
3.7% (1)
Total: 100% (27)
What differences did you notice in the performance of the different majors, CIS, CE, and CS?
There were undergraduate CE, CIS, and CS majors as well as mathematics majors in the class. In
general, this course required two complementary skills—mathematics and computing, and there was no
noticeable difference in either between the CE and the CS students. The mathematics students had less
programming background and also did not seem to have a noticeable edge in the more mathematical
aspects. There were only two CIS majors in the class. Neither did especially well, which could be due to
a poorer background in mathematics. However, neither of the CIS students was especially “responsible”
as a student with regard to class attendance and turning in assignments. Whether the lack of
responsibility was due to expected poor performance or merely an indicator of poor performance was
impossible to tell.